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Get to Know Our Student Bloggers for Fall 2021
This season, we've added 19 new bloggers to our ever-growing student blogger team.
By: Team BWW Nov. 12, 2021
The BroadwayWorld student blogger program is excited to welcome 19 new writers to the student blogging team this season, running from October to January. The bloggers represent colleges from all over the world!
Our student bloggers write about how they're coping with the current global health crisis, give insight on their school's performing arts programs, share their opinions on the latest theater news, and so much more.
Check out more Student Blogs here! And don't miss a single blog by following our Instagram and liking our Facebook page!
Get to know our new writers and read their latest posts below.
Student Blogger: Allie Flanders
Allie is a sophomore at Vassar College.
Student Blog: How to Find Connection After Almost Two Years of Isolation
Excerpt: Coming back to school this year was a difficult transition. I felt a little bit cheated out of my freshman year, as I am sure so many can relate to. Between online classes and limited activities and clubs, meeting people and feeling connected was difficult. This year, I decided I wanted to seek out hope and connection through my passions.
Student Blogger: Annie Petrelli
Annie is a freshman at Loyola University Chicago
Student Blog: Midterms and Musicals
Excerpt: This is my first year at college. It can be both exciting and at the same time anxiety-inducing. After finally getting through the fear of move in, a new fear has formed: midterms. While I had semester exams throughout high school, those only accounted for a small portion of my grade.
Student Blogger: Brighton Horan
Brighton is a senior at Marymount Manhattan College.
Student Blog: An Introduction
Excerpt: Hello, BroadwayWorld readers! I'm Brighton (they/them) and I'm a current senior at Marymount Manhattan College on the Upper East Side of New York City! I am studying for my BA in Theatre Arts with concentrations in Directing and in Theatre & New Media.
Carmen is a freshman at Florida International University
Student Blog: Music, My Best Friend
Excerpt: Music is your number one empathizer. Every genre, every song, and every lyric to me represents different people to depend on to find solace or simply as an escapade from ennui. Especially since I associate much of my musical erudition with my parents' and grandparents' upbringing classics along with the new music I grew up with, you're exposed to a whole universe of magic that can really cheer you up at any given time. It's also something I take to heart since I've sung throughout my life and just always look further than just how music makes me feel, such as analyzing the instruments utilized or how harmonies were built to make a fabulous syncopation, and blah-blah-BLAH. I shan't bore you with that since I'm not a music teacher. But, I revel in the fact that music can solely convert itself into an act of leisure to a lengthy encyclopedia of rhythms that I must observe and then learn from.
Annie is a sophomore at Marymount Manhattan College
Student Blog: Quick and Easy Broadway Costumes for Halloween
Excerpt: Have you ever wanted to dress like your favorite theater character? Now you can! Read this student blog post to see how you can have some great and easy Halloween costumes of different theater characters.
Annie is a sophomore at University of California, San Diego
Student Blog: The Top Five Musicals to Get You Ready for Halloween
Excerpt: With the leaves changing, the temperatures dropping, and the new display of pumpkin and skeleton decorations everywhere, it is clear that fall is in the air and Halloween is just around the "coroner," to quote The Addams Family musical. Although October is usually an exciting time for students as they get further settled into their college routine, it can also be a stressful period due to the increasing amounts of assignments and midterms. For all of these reasons, it is not hard to imagine that college students, like me, have not yet gotten in the mood for Halloween. Thus, to help get you ready for October 31st, I have listed the top five Halloween musicals. Whether you stream these titles in your free time or listen to the curated playlist below, these musicals are sure to put you in the Halloween mood.
Student Blogger: Erica Lambert
Erica is a senior at Manhattanville College
Student Blog: An Original Adaptation
Excerpt: We received such a great response from the audience. It was great to receive such a positive response for something all of the cast and the director/writer himself put so much hard work into! We created an original production in seven weeks. Plus, it was the first live performance back at my school since the COVID-19 outbreak. Being a part of this production was such a breath of fresh air, wholesome, fun, and positive experience. This really made me see a different side to what theater can be when we forego 'normal'. If you ever get the opportunity to work on a new production you should go for it!
Jake is a freshman at Bradley University
Student Blog: A Great Theater Teacher
Excerpt: Although he was my teacher, I, and many other students, considered him a friend. He was one of the easiest, most enjoyable people to talk to, and he always found the good in those around him, even if there wasn't much good to find. [...] If I were tasked with characterizing a great theater teacher, I would give them every trait of Mark Guerra. If I were tasked with characterizing a great human, I would give them every trait of Mark Guerra.
Student Blog: Staying Involved in Theatre (for Non-Theatre Majors)
Excerpt: Almost everyone, including myself, expected me to major in musical theatre. It's what I eat, sleep, and breathe. Instead, I'm pursuing a degree in Architecture, but I don't want to miss out on theatre while I'm in college, so I've compiled some ideas for how you (and I) can stay involved in the theatre scene no matter what your major is.
Lana is studying acting at Boston University
Student Blog: Beautiful, Brilliant Change
Excerpt: Hi Friends! My name is Lana Sage (She/Her). I am currently attending Boston University for my BFA in Acting with a musical theatre concentration ('25). In my first blog, I contemplate my lack of homesickness and acceptance of the loneliness I've experienced my first two months of college. I hope to remind myself of the necessity that is change.
Lauren is a freshman at New York University
Student Blog: The Struggle of Becoming an Educated Actor
Excerpt: 'What makes a successful actor?' is a question I hear all too often at workshops and intensives, questionnaires, and even in classes. A question with no defined answer, open to perspective and experience to guide it. A question that prompts me to raise another, much more important question that I find somewhat synonymous; 'what makes an educated actor?'
Student Blogger: Makalah Sizer
Makalah is a senior at Nazareth College
Student Blog: Day at the Museums
Excerpt: Visiting the African American Museum was a wonderful experience. I had been in the past, but wasn't able to see all of the exhibits. One of my favorite exhibits was the 'Taking the Stage' exhibit. I had the most amazing time on this trip, not only because I was able to see my sister, but also because I was able to learn more about my peoples histories and have a fun time while doing it
Student Blogger: Mariana Elosúa
Mariana is studying International Relations at Tec de Monterrey
Student Blog: What Does Musical Theatre Mean to You?
Excerpt: This is one question. Yet, one question holds a myriad of answers. How do we respond to this? We go back to the basics. We try to search for answers in their most complex forms, when in fact we should be looking for them in their most simplest forms. Simplicity goes with the purest of things. What makes you smile? Do you feel at home? Do you feel natural when doing things or do you feel forced? Does it feel like new every time?
Student Blog: Pura Vida, Jonathan Larson!
Excerpt: One of the songs from the project, 'Pura Vida', particularly caught my attention. It is about environmental preservation and nature. Pura Vida literally means 'pure life', but in Costa Rica it's like a motto; it's an expression used in almost every conversation. It means that everything is fine, but it can also mean thank you. When I first listened to the song I wondered if Jonathan Larson had ever been to Costa Rica. How did he come up with the phrase?
MC is a senior at Fordham University - Lincoln Center
Student Blog: Friendly Reminder: Smile!
Excerpt: A smile brings many benefits, one of them is in our health. How is that possible? Simple, it releases endorphins or the 'happiness hormones' which help fight stress, improves oxygenation of the blood as the lungs expand and more air enters, also digestion improves as the diaphragm moves and facilitates the digestive process, and last but not least prolongs life up to 4 more years.
Student Blogger: Olivia Murray
Olivia is a sophomore at American University
Student Blog: Hadestown at the Kennedy Center
Excerpt: This show was absolutely immaculate and there is nothing that can compare to it. I could honestly continue to go on and list every detail I noticed and analyzed, but that would be a very long read for you. I am just so grateful I was able to see this talented company with my sister and her grandmother, and I loved being able to show them why I love theatre so much. The touring company of Hadestown is no joke. I highly recommend to anyone who is able, to go and see the show when it comes to a city near you, you won't want to miss it.
Student Blogger: Rebecca Goldfarb
Rebecca is studying musical theatre at Long Island University Post
Student Blog: Curtains Up! Light the Lights!
Excerpt: The magic of being in a rehearsal room again, of watching a cast perform without a script in their hands for the first time again, of tearing up and getting chills from a powerful moment on stage again-- they're all parts of putting a production together that I didn't even realize how much I missed. After waiting over a year for live theatre to return at LIU Post, I am currently assistant directing our production of The Laramie Project! Here's everything you need to know about our rehearsal process so far since we open this weekend.
Student Blogger: Sarah Tennille
Sarah is a freshman at AMDA
Student Blog: Three Things I Learned in My First Month Studying Musical Theatre in NYC
Excerpt: I quickly found myself nervously anticipating my first day of class, worrying that something would go horribly wrong or that I'd somehow end up hating it. Thankfully, once I said goodbye to my cat and actually began college in earnest, I realized that it wasn't so intimidating afterall and that I could share my experiences with others to help them through this process that was so stressful it nearly turned my hair grey at 18. So, for those of you out there who will soon be moving to the big city to continue their fine arts education, here are some of my most helpful notes.
Student Blogger: Sophie Rossman
Sophie is a freshman at New York University
Student Blog: Park Royalty: "Fame" at NYU is Not What You Think
Excerpt: Everyone's a star in the park: the street performers masked in paint, the dimpled, grey-haired lady blowing bubbles for the passersby, and even you, a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed 17-year-old college student whose only objective is to breathe in the vibrance of your new home.
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